It was not clear whether there would be anything from the Israeli courts that would compel the women to pay the fine.

But the firm is known to have previously filed against other international bodies who opposed Israel.

Even when the law firm has had rulings in its favour, the question of getting the money was always a big question, the reporter said.

"She believes agreements between Israel and New Zealand will allow it to happen but it was still a big question mark."

The reporter said the lawyer for the case had previously made it clear it was partly aimed at warning activists overseas.

"When they filed the lawsuit that's what the lawyer had said, they wanted to serve as a message from people half around the world who want to impact lives here, [they] should also think about whether or not that will have repercussions."

Waikato University law professor Alexander Gillespie said the decision would have a chilling effect on free speech.

"This is polictical theatre. This is not really a legal issue, this is about a court in Israel trying to create a precedent, and it will have quite a large global impact.

"A lot of people will start watching this because the fear will be that if you're critical of Israel, no matter where you are in the world, you could be sued."

Prof Gillespie said Israel would find it incredibly difficult to force the women to pay the fine.

"In theory they can apply to the courts here to enforce their judgement, but it's very unlikely that the judgement will be enforced because it's completely contrary to our own laws.